Nigerian human rights lawyer and social critic, Dele Farotimi, has sharply criticized President Bola Tinubu’s administration, describing the country as being in “free fall” amid escalating insecurity and questioning the government’s ability to protect its citizens.

Farotimi’s remarks come in response to recent violent incidents, including the abduction of 25 students from Government Girls Comprehensive Secondary School in Maga, Kebbi State, where bandits also killed the school’s vice principal.

He said, “Nigeria is in free fall. The government at all levels has not only failed miserably in its primary duties to the victims, it has become glaringly derelict, and stands credibly accused of complicity in the multiple crimes being committed against humanity. Its continuing failure to act invites true anarchy in the country. The buck stops with you, President Bola Tinubu. Do we still have a country? I struggle to see a government.”

The recent wave of violence also includes the killing of APC chieftain Umar Moriki in Zamfara State by suspected bandits and the murder of six residents of an IDP camp in Amadu village, Taraba State. These attacks have triggered widespread outrage and heightened concerns about the government’s capacity to maintain security.

Farotimi, a vocal critic of the government who was recently detained for 21 days on defamation and cyberbullying charges, argued that inaction by authorities at all levels suggests complicity in crimes against humanity, worsening public distrust and national instability.

His statement underscores growing domestic and international scrutiny of Nigeria’s handling of security challenges, particularly in the northern region, at a time when the United States has designated the country as a “Country of Particular Concern” over allegations of Christian persecution.